Eh, I think piece is better viewed as just an extended interview/thinkpiece on Holland. But it is let down a bit by the framing, which doesn't really convey tha

Eh, I think piece is better viewed as just an extended interview/thinkpiece on Holland. But it is let down a bit by the framing, which doesn't really convey that. Yes, it starts out of the gate with Amabel but that kind of thing is so common nowadays in "long form journalism" that it doesn't really signify anymore that she's the actual centerpiece of the article rather than just some "inciting incident" kind of character. Another article in the same issue of The New Yorker on crossword puzzles does exactly this with Mangesh Ghogre. It leads with him but is really meant as more of a "broad" piece in contrast to the one about Amabel Holland which is more a deeper dive on a single individual. Because, I agree, if it were really going to be a broader piece about the personal, political art of boardgame design I don't know how you can't talk about Spirit Island and it's anti-colonialist theme pushing back against decades of thoughtless boardgame theming, which could contain dozens of examples of things like Mombasa/Skymines.